Log-turner.



No. 863,929. PATENTED AUG. 20, 19707.

' H. S. MITCHELL.

LOG TURNER.

APPLICATION FILED APR. 18, 1906.

WITNESSES: L W INVENTOR Alma/{M4 I v B1" (548w fl p/40% ATTORNEY THE NcxRls PETERS 00-, wAsHmsmn, n. c.

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HENRY S. MITCHELL, OF SEATTLE, WASHINGTON, ASSIGNOR TO ALLIS-OHALMERS COMPANY, OF MILWAUKEE, WISCONSIN, A CORPORATION OF NEW JERSEY.

LO G-TURNER.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Aug. 20, 1907.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that l, I'IENRY S. MITCHELL, a citizen of the United States, residing at Seattle, in. the county of King and State of Washington, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Log-Turners, of which the following is a specification.

This invention relates to log-lifting machines used in saw-mills for lifting and conveying logs onto the saw carriage, and is especially applicable to that type of machines employing horizontal cam-operated skids as a means of supporting and lifting the logs while being so conveyed.

One object of my invention is to employ independent power means for operating said skids so that they may be raised or lowered independently of any other operation of the machine. By these means the logs will be more completely under the control of the operator. Moreover, it can be assured that the skids will be raised above the level of the carriage before the transfer thereto is made.

A further object of my invention is to provide a cam of such construction that it may be operatively mounted upon old machines with very little trouble and render the skids thereof independently operative, thus applying my invention to old machines without reconstructing the same.

In the drawing,-Figure 1 is a side view of the machine andcarrier, parts being in section. Fig. 2 is a plan view of the cam shaft, rock shaft, and connecting members.

A horizontal skid l is mounted at one end on pivot 2 so as to be free for vertical movement at the other end. The free end is provided with a bracket 3 upon which is rotatably mounted a roller 4.

The cam shaft 5 is mounted in suitable bearings in the frame 55.

Loosely mounted on the cam shaft 5 is a plurality of cam arms 6, each provided with a cam surface 61 upon which the roller f rests. These cam arms may be of one solid piece but I prefer to make them of two pieces,

having the line of division through the axis ofthe bore kind of metal providing durability and strength.

They may be formed in two separate pieces, or may be made in one solid piece and split in the process of manufacture. The latter process is preferred. The free end of the cam arm is connected to a rock arm 71 keyed to a rock shaft 7 by means of a link 67. Each cam arm is connected in this way to the rock shaft 7 which is mounted in suitable bearings 72 secured to the frame 55. The rock shaft 7 has a rock arm 73 rigidly mounted thereon by means of which it receives its oscillating motion through a link 74 connecting to the piston rod 81 of the cylinder 8 by means of cross head 82 sliding on guide 83 bolted to frame 55.

Aside from the cam operated skid raising means, the invention as shown is operated in connection with a Simonson log turner such as is described in U. S. Patent 408,7 60. In brief, this consists of swinging arms 9, 9, keyed to cam shaft 5. These may be split as in the case of the cam arms. One or more of these arms is free at its outer end. One of the arms 9 is positively connected by means of connecting rod or link 91 to a cross head, not shown. The cross head is guided horizontally and has connection to the piston rod of a substantially horizontal cylinder, none of these parts, how ever, being shown.

The operation of the device is as follows: A log is placed upon the skid 1, steam is admitted to cylinder 8 so as to raise the free end of the skid to a height above the level of the carriage 20. The arm 9 of the Simonson turner is then caused to push the log from the skid onto the carriage 20. After fastening to the head blocks of the carriage 20, a slab is then sawed from off the side of the log adjacent the skid. The log is then released from the carriage head blocks when it will, either of itself or by being urged, fall again upon the skid with the flat side down, the skid having previously been de pressed to its lowest position. The object now is to get the log upon the carriage with the flat side down. To do this, steam is first allowed to pass the cylinder 8 so as to again operate the cam arm 6 to raise the skids so that their upper surface is above the level of the carriage 20. The Simonson push arms 9 are now operated so as to push the log from the skids 1 onto the carriage 20. The log now will slide upon the skids because of the flat surface caused by the removal of a slab. In the preceding transfer from the skids to the carriage. the log rolled onto the carriage, there being no fiat side.

In the Simonson machine of United States Patent 408,760, it will be noted that there is no means for separately raising the skids. A fault of this machine, therefore, is that the turning means sometimes operated too soon, that is, before the free end of the skids was brought up to the level of the carriage. In this case the log is jammed against the top oi the carriage and either the machine will be stopped or the log must be pried up manually or large pieces will be gouged from the sawed lace ol the log should the power be sufficient to slide the log onto the carriage notwithstanding that thefree ends of the skids are not raised high enough at the time the log commenced to transfer. In the present invention 01' separate and independent operation of the raising of the skids and the transferring of the log to the carriage. all this inconvenience and objection to the old Siinonson machine is avoided.

It is claimed and desired to have secured by Letters Patent:

A skid, a shaftv a push arm on the shaft, operating means for the push arm, :1 cam arin on the shaft for actuating; the skid, and operating means for the cam arm independent of the push arm operating means.

In testimony whereof I aifix my signature in presence oi two witnesses.

HENRY S. MITCHELL.

Witnesses II. S. 'lnouns, Tnosv H. ALLEN. 

